Starfish

[David Baxter PhD]

Starfish

There was a man walking along a beach after a storm. The strong waves had washed hundreds of starfish onto the shore.

The starfish would dry out and die if they lay in the sun for very long. The tide was not going to come in far enough soon enough to save them.

The man walking along the beach knew this. Each time he came to a starfish, he would pick it up and hurl it into the deep water of the ocean, saving it from certain death.

A man coming from the other direction, walking along the same beach, observed the starfish tosser. When he came close enough, he spoke.

?There are hundreds of starfish on this beach,? the realist said. ?You are tossing in a few of them, but you are not making a difference.?

Picking up another starfish, the man said, ?I?m making a difference to this one,? and he tossed it into the deeper water.

 

[NicNak]

People say the same thing about me. I believe many gestures that seem small have large impacts. Many people will not even see the impacts they make in the world for they are acts of kindness to strangers. Personally if I think I can make a difference, no matter how small, I will do it.

This post reminded me of the Garth Brooks song, The Change.
Garth Brooks, The Change Lyrics

One hand
Reaches out
And pulls a lost soul from harm
While a thousand more go unspoken for
They say what good have you done
By saving just this one
It's like whispering a prayer
In the fury of a storm

And I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world will know
That it will not change me

This heart
Still believes
The love and mercy still exist
While all the hatred rage and so many say
That love is all but pointless in madness such as this
It's like trying to stop a fire
With the moisture from a kiss

And I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world will know
That it will not change me

As long as one heart still holds on
Then hope is never really gone

I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world we know
Never changes me

What I do is so
This world will know
That it will not change me

 

[Jazzey]

Thank you...*press print*...*back pocket*.

 

[amastie]

...*press print*...*back pocket*.

Absolutely!
I've not heard anything so empowering in a very long time.
NN, you've taken David's message, an important one to remember, and added another dimension to it by recalling for me how it affects the person doing the giving.
:thankyou:

 

[NicNak]

I hope the religious references don't offend anyone. There is a great message behind this song.

YouTube - Hands Jewel

Hands by Jewel

If I could tell the world just one thing
It would be that we're all OK
And not to worry 'cause worry is wasteful
And useless in times like these

I won't be made useless
I won't be idle with despair
I will gather myself around my faith
For light does the darkness most fear

My hands are small, I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken

Poverty stole your golden shoes
It didn't steal your laughter
And heartache came to visit me
But I knew it wasn't ever after

We'll fight, not out of spite
For someone must stand up for what's right
'Cause where there's a man who has no voice
There ours shall go singing

My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
I am never broken

In the end only kindness matters
In the end only kindness matters

I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
My hands are small I know

But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken

My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken
We are never broken

We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's mind
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's heart
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's eyes
We are God's hands
We are God's hands

 

[amastie]

..
I will gather myself around my faith
For light does the darkness most fear

..

For me, that's the most helpful thing